Category: Uncategorized

Anti-Claus

So the family (just mine…Lovely, Little Bear, and myself) are celebrating Christmas but not Santa Claus. Why? A few reasons…First, it is a relationship built on a lie. Secondly, it fosters hope that is later dashed to pieces. Lastly and most importantly, I feel it takes the focus off of the whole point of Christmas. Sure, giving is one point of Christmas, but in my opinion it doesn’t promote what Christ came to accomplish.

So here is a story about an experience we had this weekend while shopping for Christmas presents.

We were shopping for Little Bear’s presents on Sunday afternoon after church. We went to a local Kmart (or as my grandma says, “Kmarx”) to grab the last of the gifts. During our trek through the store, Little Bear let us know that she had a “dirty butt” and since it was the weekend I was on diaper duty. We walk across the store sans buggy trying to locate the restrooms only hoping that there would be a baby changing table or some other surface other than a pissed on floor to change my precious little girl. We finally get to the snack shack. The men’s room had no changing table and the women’s room was Out of Order. I asked if I could zip in and change her really quick. The ladies behind the counter grinned and blurted, “Surely!! Just keep tha der opum.” A quick minute later we are walking back out and the ladies are admiring the sweet girl that is my daughter. One of the ladies, who probably went to high school with Fred Flintstone, asked the question, “So, is Santa comin’ ta yer hauwse?” I looked at Little Bear and just smiled and said, “No ma’am, Santa won’t be coming to our house.” The two old white ladies looked at each other, one looking like, “Poor thing, I bet they can’t afferd no Chrismas.” The other looked at me like, “I bet hEz one dem peeples dat don’t eat no perk and don’t belive in Jesus. You know…dem Juice peeples.”

I grinned. They tried not to make faces or act like I took them off guard, but it was too late. The younger of the two elder ladies commented, “well, you have a beautiful little girl. Merry Christmas…or…Happy Holidays, which ever you celebrate.”

Very diplomatic, I thought. I just replayed the whole conversation when I sat down with my grandparents while they were talking about the Holy Ghost, and asked them to explain what they thought the Holy Ghost was. They think I am not saved now. You can’t help it when people have never been challenged in what they believe. I was simply trying to get to the heart of what they believe. They turned it into, well, he must be going to a church that don’t teach Jesus and God and the Holy Ghost. Not true, by the way.

Back to the store…

The fact is that if they had seen our buggy, they would have known that we had Christmas presents. Sure we didn’t have a massive pile of gifts, but we have some for Little Bear and some family.

I just wanted to sit down with them and chat about Christmas and why we don’t celebrate Santa Claus.

Maybe some day I will go back and take that time. Until then.

NO NO NO on HO HO HO!!!

Count’em..TWO!!!

Last night was fantastic. As soon as I finished up at work in the Loan Office, I took off to grab a bottle of water from the bookstore. I managed to convince myself that I needed a sharpie as well. So…as I was leaving the bookstore, I recognized someone. Who? Well, I’ll tell you in a few more minutes.

I gingerly walked over to the young man and asked, “Hey, could you do me a favor?”

Mystery person: “Uh, sure. What can I help you out with, man?”

Gingerly: “Would you sign my guitar?!?”

Mystery person: “Sure!!! I’d be glad to do that for you!”

We chatted a little bit about my guitar, the fact that mice don’t really grow on trees, he looks different in normal dress than in his Superman Suit, and if I was going to sell my guitar now that he had signed it.

I told him that I had absolutely no intentions of selling my guitar. Especially since he had signed it. I told him that I had to run and hated the fact that I would miss most of his concert, but that I would come up and check it out as soon as I finished teaching my guitar class. He thanked me for taking a minute, I did the same.

Who was it, you may ask??? DAVE BARNES!!!

Who’s Dave Barnes? What, you don’t know, Dave?

Well, he does have a lot of faces. Maybe you know Granny or Superman or Dahweed Barness.
Either way, the guy is fantastic, down to earth, and an all around funny guy.
So now that the Yamaha is signed, that makes both of my guitars autographed by famous people. the Yamaha is signed by Dave Barnes and the Epi Zephyr is signed by Benny Garcia. I’m two for two.
I either have to get another guitar to have signed or just start letting everyone sign the Yamaha.
Hmmm…..?

Welcome to the Clock!!

Today is an interesting one…

At work, things are a little laid back. Hell, there a lot laid back. So far no students fussing about anything or parents calling to harass us. No departmental disruptions from other departments. Just a good day to be at work. Sure there is plenty of work to do, but it isn’t in a tizzy with forty-three other things or people coming at you. Just one or two things at a time. In days passed, work has been more than intolerable. I haven’t entertained quitting, but I have thought about asking if I can come in a work from like 2 p.m. to about 9 p.m. just so I didn’t have to deal with the drama. I digress.

So this morning, for whatever reason, I have felt like speaking in an accent. Now, usually it is a British accent that I choose, but today is different. Today it is an actual person not a stereo-type. Who? The one…. The only…Sean Connery!!! Why? Crap, I don’t know. It just locked in on me today. Hunted me down like a dog in the wilderness. Hmm?

Anyway. I’ve been off-and-on with the accent. I’ve had a blast. I even called my mom and talked to her in the Sir Sean voice. Even my own mother didn’t understand why?!?!? Booooohoooo hooohoohoo
Well, today has definitely a work-a-holic day. Between the Birthday lunch for a co-worker and an hour for lunch…it’s been great!!!

Tomorrow will be Friday. The seventh of December. You know what that means???? National Remembrance of Pearl Harbor Day…shake a Veteran. Oh, no!! Shake their hand, or gently pat them on the back. Hell, maybe just say thanks, but be sure not to sneak up on them. Some of those guys and gals get a little shaken up so take it easy.

The Lack of Blogdom

No huge deal. I was so over-busy on Monday that all things stood in my way of blogging. It was much like the Black Knight in Monty Python’s Holy Grail movie. Except instead of me, King Arthur, King of the Britains, kicking some Black Knight booty by chopping off limbs, torso, and head, the Black Knight made more like Aniken Skywalker against the Sand people.

Work was so busy on Monday that it made me and my family, literally, sick. The good news is that before I was chained to the bed by my sickness (actually I was chained to a toilet) I managed to get the car to the repair shop for the last installment of repairs (Heaven Hopes). Now that we’re on the other side of that, I can breathe. No, wait?!? I can’t! Here he comes again!!!

Have at you!!!

Gnomes, Beards, and the Fantastic Four

The past couple of weeks I have had this infatuation with gnomes. I try to bring up the topic at least once each day. Why? Well, why not? It’s random, that’s pretty much all of the reason I need to bring up something random.

So I was meeting with some guys last night at the new BAM in the part of town I live in. After there were comments about the overgrowth of my beard, me spilling about 12.5 ounces of my Decaf Coffee with a shot of Amaretto flavoring, and cleaning up said spill, there was mention of gnomes. Now one person mentioned that I bring up gnomes because I look like one. Ouch! I retorted with a resounding “We’ll, I could look like Santa Claus.” and realized that all I lack is a white beard and a red suit (since I have gained a few pounds back). I regressed after that. Well, until one guys says something about wanting to get a 12-string guitar. The conversation reverted to gnome-en-clature. you have the Travelling Gnome, garden gnomes, and we collectively brainstormed that we should get a fodder bag and hang it from the headstock of the guitar. When (not if) one of the strings goes out of tune, the Tuning Gnome would just reach up and adjust the correct tuner. GREAT IDEA, AYE???!!!!! I wish I could get a picture of that one!!! HA!!!

So today, with spending a few minutes looking at pictures of gnomes on my lunch break, trying to find the best ones to put on the blog, I realized that I DO, in fact, look like a giant gnome. My beard seems to be getting somewhat gnarly and rough-looking. I’ve been growing it because Lovely and Little Bear love it. That and there is a certain pride that comes with the ability to grow a full beard like mine. Most guys just slobber on themselves and mutter with a gasp, “Your beard is so full! My facial hair just grows in plugs or splotchs.” (my own brother included!) So do I continue growing the chin-beast or do I succumb to the pressures of those that look less like a giant garden gnome and more like the baby-faced suit geeks?

I SAY…………

Oh, the Fantastic Four? Never seen it. No real reason why I put it in the title other than the fact that its random. See how it works???

Thankful thoughts…

You know, the past few days have been absolutely and restfully tiring. I’m not sure how that makes sense, but some how it does.

Wednesday was only a half day at work. Thank you good people in the expensive suits for letting us go home and having two and a half days with our families. It was and is much appreciated.

Thursday was not just Thanksgiving, but it was also my grandma’s birthday. I’m not quite sure how old she is now, but I think I could safely say that she is in her mid-70s…maybe more. I mean, I’m nearly 30 and she was in her 50s when I was born, right!?! We had some family come in last week from Texas so we got to visit with them on one side of the family. On the other (my side of the family) everyone showed up for the same holiday. Usually we’ll have all but one family or just a few people show. This Thanksgiving all were in attendance. It was a happy birthday for Granma Watts. There was a lot of good food and plenty of meat. (Of which I did not partake.)

Friday was a nice day. We pretty much slept in and after some time Shady, Little Bear, and I ventured out into the Black Friday-day traffic to spend some good time together.

Saturday we went our separate ways. Shady and Little Bear took off for a day out and I worked trying to work off my car-repair debt. It was a good work day. I got a whole crap-load accomplished. We came together after the work day had turned out the lights and the family (my in-laws included) got together and put up the Christmas tree and had hot cocoa and pizza. We stayed up watching the Auburn/Alabama game and cheered prolifically as Auburn took home the 6th victory in a row.

Sunday was a lazy day. More on that later.

Reflections of the week…

I am so glad that I have a good job that allows me to be off for the holidays that I get to have. Sure we have to work on Memorial Day, but we get a substantial amount of time for Christmas break. (about 10 days PAID!!!)

I am thrilled to have an extended family that is as generous and loving as they are despite their craziness and mental blocks.

I am elated that I have the opportunity to share another set of holidays with Shady and Bear. As I’ve mentioned before, we don’t have much, but we have a good solid marriage and great family.

What may come? Come!

This blog originally began as one of my everybody else has it better rants. Me feeling sorry for myself and look at me in my pissy pitty party pool. I think it is time for me to just grow up and take it like a freakin’ man. What good are trials is you wimp your way through them. If this doesn’t end up right or that doesn’t go like you want SO FREAKIN’ WHAT!!! If I don’t allow myself to hurt and get frustrated, but realize that this is really for a greater good, then none of this will accomplish it’s goal.

Consider it pure joy when you face trials of many kinds because it will develop, in you, perserverance, and it must finish it’s work so you are mature and you not lacking anything.

At least that’s what the author, James, says. So, what may come? Come. I’m not asking for greater testing and trials in an aggresive and prideful way. Just accepting the fact that until this point I have aggresively been prideful and whiney. None of that shows Christ in me.

It is time that I grow a pair and become the man that God has intended for me to be. And it isn’t a sniveling brat-ish $h1thead that complains about anything including insignificant things like a papercut or a hangnail.

What a Dreamly Wicked Day?!?

Today was born to be an absolutely amaz-i-fying day. The only real reason for that is that it began with God. He breathed today into exsistance. God knew what was to be unvieled today. Revelations that are way beyond human thought.

Another reason today was bound to be amazing??? It has been 5 months and 11 days of torture. Nearly 5 1/2 months of ownership that has been restrained. I have been making the payments on the car and insurance, but no way to actually drive the car due to the broken-down-ed-ness of the Bull-car (its a Taurus, by the way).

I had the vehicle towed to the garage on October 29 (just a mere three weeks and one day ago). After much confusion and, I’m sure, many explitives, she has been revived. What were the issues?

Faulty fuel pump
Cracked gas tank seal (which caused the fuel smell and could have caused an explosion)
Two bad Catalytic Converters
And two spark plugs and wires replaced

Here is the kicker…they are bringing the car to me. It isn’t very often that a mechanic shop would do this…unless it is a dealership. This is far from a dealership…complete with non-dealership prices.

At a dealership just the replacement of the Cata. Converters would be $2,400, not to mention the Fuel pump, gas tank seal, and plugs. I had a dealership tell me that to replace the spark plugs and wires, it would cost $250. HELL, NO! The parts only cost about $45. So you are gonna charge me $205 dollars just to put them on?!?

Anyway…The mechanic should be bringing the car any minute now. I most certainly can’t wait.

I’ll post new pics of the old car soon. Oh, my thanksgiving, i’ll be saying, “God, I am thankful that you have given us a way to get our car fixed. So now I’ll detail it on Thanksgiving (as opposed to actually spending time with family)!!!”

Post soon.

Wood, Iron, Gold, Stone, or something else?

Should my likeness be made in Wood? hmmm? I guess termites and
rain water could get to it. Nope!

What about iron? Iron is strong and lasts a long time, right?
Except, well, it doesn’t look good. Nope!

I got it…Gold!!! It’s shiney and can be easily formed…but it
can’t be pure cuz pure gold isn’t very strong. Nope!

Maybe it should be a stone-carved likeness?!? Stone, can be polished
to be shiney, will hold up well in the weather…Maybe this is
it…

Or something else, perhaps??!?

So what am I talking about? Well, I have been relying on my own self to be my own source of provision, wisdom, health, finances, and religion. Why, just yesterday morning, while at church, I looked around and (hopefully not aloud) said, “Maybe all of this belief stuff is just a heeping, hot pile of bull$hit? I mean, provision? I look around and we don’t have all of what we need. Where is God in that? Huh?!? HUH!?!?!?!? No home of our own. No mode of working transportation. Barely enough to feed ourselves. And at the end of the month, we are in the hole by nearly $100.” A little more than a year ago I looked to the Bible to find a scripture that would help me with this idea. One that was easy to remember and I could say it out loud when I doubted. I found this:

Psalm 3:5 “I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.”

From reading around this verse for context, I took from it that David could lie down and sleep because he knew the goodness of God and the safety that God still provides today. And also that David was able to wake up because God had given him breath to carry him through the next day. Fast forward to today. Well, I don’t have anyone chasing me to kill me, but I do have people calling me to pay my bills. (which is never good by the way) I am not living in holes in caves, but we are living with my in-laws in a comparable amount of space like the first place that Lovely and I lived in which was about 250 sq. ft., bathroom included! We aren’t being attacked by swords and stones and arrows, but the firey arrows promised in the scripture have definately be flying in the air with our beliefs and convictions and parenting being questioned every step of every day.

So this year, I have evidentally decided that I would take on being god. I had good intentions, of course. I didn’t even do this intentionally. January of 2007 I took on a total of 1 full-time job and 2 part time jobs. Total working hours per week = approx 74 hours. I worked this schedule until May. I dropped one night to work with the choir @ the Lovelady Center. I was working at a frantic pace. At the end of June ’07 I decided to end the job at the restaurant since our rental home was being placed on the market. That cut me back to around 55 hours per week, but money was needed. Within about a month and a half I had gone back to the restaurant to help pay for gas. Finally I am back down to about 45 hours a week (for now). The Taurus should be coming out of the shop either this week or next. (I hope!?!)

So, how have I done so far as god? I have sucked it up. I probably aged about 4 years and all I have to show for it is no car, no place of our own, very little money, and furious beyond my ability to communicate.

So my choices? Wood, Stone, Gold, Iron, or maybe, just maybe I should “man up” and seek God on what He wants instead of crappin’ around trying to play like I can do anything myself.

A little late, but…

I never mentioned the last weekend’s endings. A.K.A. “Weekendings”

So a buddy of mine sent word to me to me that he had some tickets to a concert. Tickets to the Derek Webb / Sandra McCracken concert @ WorkPlay on Friday night. So I said, “Sure, dude. Lovely and I would love that.” Now the last time I had heard anything by Derek Webb it was a concert with the group Caedmon’s Call. I didn’t like it. so much so that I listened to the show for about 30 minutes and my brother and I then decided to leave because we rather hated the music.

Friday night couldn’t have been more of a 180 degree turn for me. I had breifly listened to a song or two of his since that time in the late 90s, but this was amazing. Of course, Derek was promoting his new CD The Ringing Bell and his wife, Sandra, doing the same. It was an intimate night where the two artists clearly showed their hearts and deeply-rooted Biblical convictions. Each song had its’ own offering. One, a toe-tapping “good’un” tune that was reminicent of Johnny Cash meets the Beatles, then next a heart-torturing song about depravity of our “Christian souls” of depth in Christ due to our fixation on earthly things and lack of desire for something more than just a wish-list God. They seemed to pour their hearts out through to the floor. Of course, it being a bar-type atmospher, many were drunk and trying to numb the pains that the week or life had inflicted, but I found myself drawn inward. As I sipped on my own beverage I couldn’t help but chew on the lyrics being cast my direction. Lovely and I fell in love with the honesty and reality of their words. We left the concert appreciative of our life and marriage despite all our struggles.

Saturday after trying to sleep a wink, we got up and shipped ourselves to the Samford vs. Jax State game (only for the half-time show). Little bear was definitely disinterested in Samford’s Band, but just as soon as JSU’s band took the field, she was just all movement – legs, arms, and head just a kickin’ and clappin’. We had a great time just having a family day. We took the day really slow and as it came to us. Only spur of the moment things.

The weekend was concluded by church on Sunday a.m. and p.m. The a.m. was teaching about the body of Christ and how we need to make sure to take care of ourselves as well as reaching out to those around us. If there is a need inside the church, we should meet that need. Sunday night was a continuation of the teaching on Sunday a.m.

At the end of the evening, Lovely and I just reflected and agreed that this weekend was a fantastic confirmation of God’s goodness and abundance.